


Get this Right

by Sloshed_myGosh



Category: Uncharted, Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: Accidental Touching, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Banter, Drabbles, F/M, Fluff, Missing Moments, Pregnancy, Tagging as I go, Temporary Amnesia, did I mention...., entirely self indulgent, one shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:34:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 18,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23552398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sloshed_myGosh/pseuds/Sloshed_myGosh
Summary: Some random drabbles in between games and missing moments.
Relationships: Nathan Drake/Elena Fisher
Comments: 66
Kudos: 105





	1. Rude awakening

Nate said he wouldn’t be long. Elena wonders how many times she’s going to buy his lies before she finally gets it. 

By the time she arrives home, the lights are just as she left them, off. In their bedroom the blankets are perfectly tucked in, pillows neatly arranged, just how she’d made it this morning. 

Elena’s sigh is the only sound in their apartment. She avoids her own gaze in the mirror, blindly taking off her necklace and grasps for the zipper on the back of her dress. It pools around her feet just as she reaches for an oversized shirt to pull over her head. 

It’s not until she’s at the sink washing her face that she hears the front door open and close. 

She wishes he would’ve at least come home during the day when she wasn’t so tired. Elena sees the mascara rings around her eyes and pumps some make up remover into a cotton pad.

She didn’t wear makeup often, she forgot to take it off first before washing her face.

“You’re up.” 

His voice is distant, off in the bedroom while she leans over the sink in the bathroom. 

“I worked late.” 

“Ah.” He says casually and it burns her up inside. 

She’d shoot him a glare if she had the energy, he wouldn’t be able to see it anyway. 

“I see you worked late too.” If you call disappearing for 3 days working late.

She can hear him chuckle, “yeah, you know how things get out of hand.” 

Elena sucks back a shaky breath, pity for her own marriage twists hard in her stomach. How could they have gotten so off course?

“Yeah.” She says much too quiet than she means to. 

He startles her in the mirror. Elena sees him behind her before she can feel him. 

“You almost done?” 

Elena’s eyes lock onto his through the mirror. “Yeah. I’m done.” She relinquishes the sink, walking toward the dresser to put on some shorts. Just like making the bed every morning, it’s not something she usually does. 

Nate shuts the door and Elena can hear the shower start. She could ask about where he’s been but he’d just talk in circles. 

The lead weight in her chest wears her down into the mattress as she settles under the covers. Elena sighs again but she doesn’t cry and she ignores the pity she feels for herself, she’s too determined. Too focused on fixing the hole they’ve dug themselves in, but right now she’s tired. 

The morning. It can be a new start. 

*

Elena dozed off so fast she didn’t feel Nate slip into bed. 

“What’s this?” He mumbles while his hand examines something on her arm. 

Elena strains through the dark until she sees the budding bruise on her skin and lays back down to close her eyes. “I bumped my arm against the washer.” 

“Ouch.” 

“Hm. I forgot all about it, actually.” She showed up to her fancy work dinner with that bruise. She’s lied about so many that her co-workers stopped asking. Actually she might’ve used a ‘got this one doing laundry’ as an excuse already. 

Thoughts of Elena’s co-workers vanish when the pad of a calloused thumb runs a line along the band of her shorts.

Elena pretends she doesn’t feel it. Laying lazy and heavy like a stone. She won’t lean into his touch, and if this is why he came home he’s sadly mistaken. 

Eventually his motions stop and he covers her with a heavy arm. She can feel his body align with hers and there’s a moment where she doesn’t think about it and she feels warm and content. 

For their marriage, she lets herself enjoy Nate being here. She missed him like hell, she reminds herself. If this was really the end then she wouldn’t have missed him…

“Did you miss me?” She could kill herself for sounding so pathetic. The only safety she has is the darkness covering the room and the heat in her cheeks. 

“Hm?” He sounds sleepy, not all yet together. Maybe this is a bad time but Elena suddenly can’t sleep anymore. Nate shoves his face into the crook of her shoulder, nose nuzzling as he takes a deep breath. 

“You were gone a lot longer than you said you would be.” 

Another low noise leaves his throat. “-‘m sorry.”

After another moment of silence Elena thought he had drifted away, but his arm squeezes tight around her. “You deserve better.” 

Elena fell asleep with thoughts of what she’d say to him in the morning. When she woke he was already gone again. The only thing on his side of the bed being a note. 

_ Elena, _

__ _ Sorry, had to catch a flight. Off to London to meet with Cutter.  _

_ -Nate _

  
  
  



	2. The ship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just before we meet Nate and Elena in Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, they had some boat troubles.

“This thing really is a hunk of junk, just like Sully said,” Nate grits out, a wrench held between his teeth. His forehead shines with sweat, and Elena watches as he shrugs out of his life vest, shoving it behind a pile of loose wires. Elena is pretty sure they’re supposed to connect to something—maybe the fuse box itself. Brushing a stray hair out of his eyes with the back of his hand, Nate squints at a circuit board that is clearly broken.

Elena pulls down her camera. “You keep calling this boat a hunk of junk and my producer will start to take offense,” she muses, setting the camera down in favor of handing Mr Drake a pocket knife and taking the wrench from him.

“If you’re so concerned with your producer’s feelings then I’m sure you’ll find a way to hide the b-roll from him. Besides, he ought to know. He rented garbage.” 

Elena rolls her eyes before she sees him crouch low to pull at some lever. They hadn’t even touched the water yet, their radar went down before they could reach the site of where Mr Drake said Sir Francis’ grave was. 

Below deck, the engine room is damp, cramped, and dark. Elena presses her back against the wall to give Nate more room, it also helps her keep grounded with the swaying of the boat.

“Whoa, shit!” 

That was the last thing Elena heard before sparks buzzed by her face and the overhead light cuts out.

“Piece. Of. Garbage. You rented a floating piece of garbage, Ted.” 

“We’re lucky it’s not a sinking piece of garbage.” 

“Don’t hold your breath.” Nate muses then holds out his arm to steady Elena after a strong wave knocks over her footing.

”Here,” she mutters, quickly recovering herself. She begins flipping a few switches and holding her hand out for the wrench. When Nate hesitates, Elena turns her head and glares at him pointedly. It would be a more effective move if they weren’t in such tight quarters. Instead, she nearly bangs her nose against his. 

Elena feels her breath catch in her throat. She hadn’t meant to get so close, but she’d seen the solution and was determined to fix it. “Hand over those wires, please.” The words come out quieter than she intended.

Nate hands over the new red and blue wires. A single bead of sweat is dripping down his nose and Elena finds herself momentarily distracted as it slinks down his Cupid’s bow and into his bottom lip. “Go on, she’s all yours.” 

Elena connects the two wires to the correct circuits and flips a few switches on the fuse box. 

… annnnd  _ nothing. _

“Hm.” She bites her lip in concentration, she swears this is the right connection. In a vague attempt to get the power going she tightens a few loose bolts and  _ voila _ .

The metal walls begin to rumble with new activity. “We have power!” 

Right when Elena begins to stand, a particularly forceful wave throws the room sideways for a bit and before anyone can right themselves another one hits. 

Elena grunts as the force of gravity throws her in Nate’s direction. She crashes into him as they both hit the wall of the hatch with a solid crack. Elena hears Nate grunt with pain as his head thunks against the metal behind them. 

If Elena thought she was close to Nate before, it was nothing compared to the entangled mess of limbs the two of them Are now. Nate has his back to the boat’s metal siding with his legs sprawled out beneath her, and Elena has been thrust forward so that she’s now basically straddling the man. 

The sudden and relentless jolts cease but neither Nate or Elena move just in case they’re in for another surprise. Through labored breaths Elena can feel her chest glued to Drake’s through the thin material of their wet suits, her hands pinned against his shoulders. It’s not comfortable, and when the initial jump fades into the familiar sway of a calm sea, Elena lets out a gasp of relief.

“Ow,” Nate moans beneath her, his hand going for the back of his head where it was banged against the wall. Thankfully, his fingers come back clean, no sign of blood.

“It’s because of all the times you called her garbage.” Elena preens now that she knows they’re both ok.

The edge of Nate’s mouth twitches, and he glances down at his lap where she still sits. “Um,” he says, rather profoundly. “Can you—”

Elena’s brow furrows as she extricates herself from Nate. She must be crushing him. “Sorry, I didn’t realize I was hurting—”

“No, no,” Nate waves off. “You didn’t hurt me.” For a moment, he seems as awkward as Elena feels, struggling for the right words. Eventually, he gives up, getting on his knees and looking at the newly working fuse box. “You know your stuff, kid.”

Elena blushes furiously, fidgeting with the fit of her wet suit before picking up her camera. “Shall we get this show on the road?”


	3. Black out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After El Dorado, Nate tries to make up for the episode he lost Elena. He ends up hitting his head too hard and suffers through an episode of temporary amnesia

“Where am I?” The words slip out to no one in particular, the only thing in his wavering field of vision being some dark slab of rock.

He must’ve just had a bad fall. The back of his head throbbed but he couldn’t move his arm up to check if he was bleeding. There’s a new sore spot in his shoulder that he doesn’t remember being there before. His back is pinned tight against jagged rock and his front against…

Something warm and soft— for the most part.

The haze clears enough that Nate takes it upon himself to see what is pushed right up against his chest. 

_ A girl.  _

She is so close he can feel her breath on his neck, hell he can feel her chest with every inhale, and probably her heartbeat if he focuses enough. Her eyes are brown and they studied his own with interest. 

On instinct Nate clears his throat and adverts his gaze back to the rock beyond her. They’re sandwiched in a crevice of some kind. 

“Are you okay?” A hand curves around his bicep and squeezes gently.

Nate nods, taking his bottom lip between his teeth. Her hand moves to rest on top of his shoulder. She tries to use him as leverage to climb out but it’s no use. The passage above is too narrow.

“Dammit…” she grunts. Nate sees a sheen of sweat on her forehead. How long have they been down here? How did they get down here? Something must’ve gone wrong.

Nate looks at the girl again, she’s looking for an escape. While he doesn’t mind the sound of her efforts and breathing, he really minds when she starts wiggling and shifting against him.

“So-“ he begins, voice tight, “you help convicts get out of jail often?” 

She stops moving enough to give him a funny look, but grants him a small laugh. “You sure you didn’t hit your head too hard, cowboy?” Her fingers glide down the side of his face. Nate can feel himself heat up, the time in prison really catching up with him fast.

He looks down to her lips, they’re pink and damp and he isn’t all that far away from them. 

“Ow- hey,  _ hey!” _ Fast and agile, her hands are down by his belt sliding around his hips. Nate can feel his cheeks flush with heat and he can’t make eye contact anymore.

“Relax, I’m not trying to rob you.” 

_ Oh, thank god.  _

“Hm. Radio must’ve dropped when we fell.” 

“Why would I have the radio?” 

“Right. Next time I’ll keep charge of the radio and map, then maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

Nate doesn’t comprehend all of that, but he still feels her hands absentmindedly hanging on his belt. “Next time, huh?”

His chest puffs out a little when he sees it’s her turn to blush. Her cheeks are rosy as she tries to hide a smile. It’s very sweet and he wonders how she got wrapped up with Rafe. 

Nate cringes. God, hopefully she’s not in love with Rafe or anything like that. Nate wouldn’t be able to stomach it.

“Here’s to Sully,” she nods upwards where a sliver of light is peeking through, “hopefully he can find us without the radio.” 

_ Holy shit, she’s with Sully.  _

“When did Sully get involved?” Nate frowns. Things must’ve gotten out of hand with Rafe if Sully is here. A lump forms in Nate’s throat. “Do you know if Sam made it out?” 

She pauses, the look on her face is not making him feel better. Her brows knit together. Her more slender arms have more wiggle room than his do so they easily come back up on his shoulders, but instead of using him as a stepping stool her grip is gentle and reassuring and he likes it far too much. If he could lean more into it, he would.

“Sam?” She asks, the question genuine. 

Nate has never been claustrophobic, but suddenly he doesn’t have enough room to breath. “Oh.” 

Her touch is back and Nate closes his eyes, concentrating on the cool fingers running soothingly through his hair. He appreciates her, this girl.

“Nate, we’re gonna get out of here. Okay?” 

He swallows the lump in his throat, “okay.”

“Nate, stay with me. Open your eyes.” He doesn’t want to. “Nathan, listen to me! If you have a concussion you need to stay awake!” 

He does as she says, meeting her brown eyes filled with worry now. “Who are you?” 

“Elena Fisher.” She says as evenly as she can but he can see the panic in her eyes. “We are in Peru, Nate.” She adds, gently. Unsure if she should continue, she drops her gaze. Nate moves what he can, his hands going to her sides to coax more out of her. “We’re filming for my show, remember? You owe me after El Dorado.” 

He gains and loses years all at once. “Shit.” He breathes. He’s not 23 and he’s not in Panama and Sam is gone. “Elena,” there’s fear in his voice, he doesn’t want her to go asking about Sam. “The radio, it’s not clipped onto my pants. It’s in my back pocket.”

“Are you feeling alright?”

“I’m- I’m a lot better, now.” He swallows back the queasy feeling in his stomach and presses against the tight space he is in. His head hurts like hell and he’s gotta get out of here. “Please, can you grab it?”

“Sure, yeah.” 


	4. The Anniversary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set between games 1 & 2

There's a dull ache in his right hand. The kind of ache that he knows from experience will need longer to heal than the one week of jail time he's landed himself. The knuckle at the base of his middle finger is split, stinging sharply in protest at the stretch required to grip his beer. 

He’s waiting for the cops to come. After his fourth or fifth drink he assumes he’s off the hook. He doesn’t feel any sort of relief like he should. 

Nate feels the weight in his pocket. He beat a man half to death for it, and he’s gonna get away with it. 

The bar is dim and musty, no one is around so he takes it out. Needs a good cleaning, but still legible. Nate’s fingers trace the foreign script he only knows bits and pieces of. The artifact is made of bronze and worthless, save for the information on it. 

It’s all he has. He holds the cold bottle of his beer to the back of his split hand. His interest on the bronze disc fades, but it’s all he has.

No sirens or lights followed him to his motel, as cheap as they come, the light on the sign is half out and his room key jams before he can get it to work. He takes a look around the greeting basket on the mini fridge. 

Some tea, instant coffee, and a few condoms.  _ Three dollars each _ the misspelled card reads. A small price to pay in the long run. 

Nate throws the basket aside and heads for the bathroom, putting his hand in the sink and running cold water. Doing his best to avoid the reflection in the mirror, his phone on the bed distracts him. Insistent ringing, with a groan he leaves the sink and shakes his hand dry. 

“Yeah.” He’s short, borderline rude and already gearing up to tell whoever it is to piss off. 

“Bad time?”

Bile threatens to rise in his throat.

“No,” his voice cracks when he tries to lighten his tone. He turns, trying to get himself together, but bangs his hand against the desk. “Fuck”

“Kinda sounds like it’s a bad time. I can call later?” 

“No. No, it’s fine I just.” He  takes a breath through his teeth, “my hand.” He won’t elaborate on it, she doesn’t need to know. 

“You’re hurt? Legitimately?”

A surprise escapes his lips, he chuckles. “No, don’t worry about me too much.” Something in his chest pops and his attention is off the pain in his hand. He wants to see her. 

“Oh, don’t flatter yourself.” 

“You at home?”

There’s a pause and he’s afraid he’s scaring her away. He sits on the bed and waits.

“Nate, are you in trouble?” She says it like she’s ready to get him out of it. He smiles to himself despite everything.

“No, I just…” he loses the words on his tongue. Vision hazy and stale beer still on his lips, he leans back. “I want to see you.” He says plainly. Pathetically.

There’s another agonizing pause. Nate bites the inside of his cheek to pass the seconds that feel like anything but.

“Where are you?” His eyes close hearing the worry in her voice.

“A shithole.” 

“Well that really narrows it down. Nathan-“ 

“Elena.” He stops her quick. She didn’t have a habit of calling him that and it stings. Sam comes to the forefront of his mind again. He can hear Elena’s breath shake in wait for whatever he has to say. He grips his phone and sits back up. “I think I need to lay low for a while.” It’s there, it’s stuck in his throat but he waits for what she has to say.

“You can always stay with me if you need a place.” _That’s my girl,_ “But I need to know what sort of trouble you’re in.” 

He doubts the cops are still after him, they would’ve caught him hours ago. “I need a break is all.” 

“Where’s Sully?”

“Making a bad deal somewhere, I’m sure.” 

He hears a small noise of amusement from her. Still buzzed, he wishes he could reach out and grab her. Have her near so she’s real and tangible. “I’ve been drinking.” 

“Hm, notice the complete lack of surprise in my voice? You’ve been slurring like a drunk pirate.” 

“My bad.” 

She scoffs at him and he leans back down. “Talk to me, what are you doing?” 

“Uh, well,” he hears movement on the other line as she shuffles the phone from hand to hand. “It is 2:34 am, I am in bed.” 

“Perfect, so am I.” 

“Oh,” she says much more quietly. Nate shifts on the bed. 

“I didn’t mean to wake you.” He cuts the tension away, not wanting to venture off into some weird pity phone sex call. He doesn’t need to be more messed up than he already is, and it’s not far to use Elena that way.

“It’s fine, I wasn’t sleeping well anyways. I’ve been wondering about you, ironically. It’s been awhile since you last called. I can only imagine it’s because you’re busy being up to no good.”

“Yeah, you’re not wrong.”

“Can I ask something of you?” Her tone is dead serious and it cuts through whatever was left of Nate’s buzz. “I don’t want a label or anything like that, but can you not disappear on me?” 

Nate takes a moment to process. He’s never thought of labels, probably because he’s never had a steady girlfriend so why bother. He supposes Elena should be considered more than… an occasional fuck? She’s definitely more than that. Is that a girlfriend? 

Nate shakes his head,  _ she’s waiting for you dumbass.  _ He clears his throat, “sometimes I can’t find cell reception.” He says dumbly.

She sighs and her disappointment brings out a nervous tick that makes nate bite into his lip. “Yes, I mean like… let me know where you and what you’re doing— that’s too much isn’t it?” 

She second guesses herself and Nate shoots up from the bed again, “oh no no no no! That’s not too much, I can do that.” He reeks of desperation but he doesn’t give a shit, in fact he keeps going just because, “don’t leave me. I can call before and after jobs and I don’t mind labels. I can be a boyfriend— I’ve never been a boyfriend before but I’m 95% sure you’re my girlfriend so I need to treat you…. as such. Right? Do you think of me that way? Or did I just fuck myself over?”

“Goddamn it.”

“What!?” He’s standing up now, pacing the room like a stressed dog.

“I wish I could see you, you sound like a mess!”

He rakes his good hand through his hair. “I am a mess!” 

There’s more shuffling on her end before she speaks. “Where are you?”

“Seville.”

“Spain?”

“Yeah. Does that matter?”

“Well, are you flying in anytime soon?”

“Yeah, first flight I can get.”

“Oh, that’s great!”

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah, I just really want to see you.”

The pang in his chest jolts him again. He lets himself feel it, the content way his heart beats. 

The next night Sully picks him up and flies him to the States. Elena Fisher is waiting for them at the landing strip and Nate lets himself feel at home in her arms. He only hopes he can offer the same solace to her. 


	5. Cowboys can model too

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A silly drabble set after Uncharted 4

Elena laughed when she saw the new ping from her email.

Sender: GQ. 

What would GQ, a men’s fashion magazine, want from Nate? She couldn’t imagine him posing for a cover shoot. In fact, the thought nauseated her. The ego of that man, if he ever found out, would sky rocket into oblivion. 

Still, she had to look. It’s her duty and responsibility to manage their new little company after all, and Nate’s a part of that. Exactly half of it. Elena had to keep reminding him when he brushed off big decisions, but she never let him hand off the responsibilities.

She clicked and read through the message and immediately began tapping out a response, more pleased with the offer than she could’ve imagined.

—

“Hey.”

“Hi.” Nate was already laying in bed, eyes never leaving the book he had in front of his face. Elena kept on pushing for his attention anyway. 

“How was your day?” She bit down her smile, she always had a lousy poker face, and crawled to him in the middle of the bed. Her hand rested on his chest as she propped her head up on her elbow.

Nate  _ almost _ put his book down. “Hm, kinda boring actually.” He flipped the page and cleared his throat. “You know I’m just used as manual labor these days.” 

Elena scoffed, her hand leaving his chest in favor of the tiny swell of her belly. “After I have this baby I’ll be out there with you, we’re 50/50 in this.” 

Nate tossed his book to the side. His hand claimed her cheek as he looked at her. “You’re perfect,” his thumb began a soothing stroke, “I’m talking about my dumbass brother. I promised pay and I still can’t get that smoking chimney to show up to work.” 

“Maybe you’re promising something too honest.” 

Nate made an unamused noise, “yeah well if he wants to spend all his time making bad deals with Sully, fine. I can find someone else, maybe Jameson has some numbers I can call.” 

Nate’s brow furrowed in thought before his attention narrowed on her once again. “You’re doing okay, yeah?”

Elena wished she could feel the baby kick but she’s not that far along yet. “I’m good. I wish I could’ve been out there with you today,” she couldn’t help herself, she smiled, “you know being at my computer all day,” she threw her arms up and stretched before falling relaxed against him, “it’s so hard.” 

Nate wrapped an arm around her and she didn’t know if it was being pregnant or what, but she really liked to be cuddled. She held on to him tight despite wanting to bust his chops. 

“Especially when I’m being pestered by GQ.”

She could practically feel Nate make a face at that. Elena smiled into his chest. “GQ? That prissy men’s magazine? What do they want from you?” 

“Oh it’s not me they want, dear.” 

Nate pushed her shoulder back to look at her face. His eyes were alert, like he was waiting for a bullet to fire. “Don’t tell me—“ 

“They want you, Nate.” 

He jumped away from her and Elena grumbled at the loss of contact. “No! I’m too old to be on a magazine like that. We do historical research, not modeling gigs.” 

“Well look at you, Mr. Nathan Drake-Fisher, standing your moral ground.”

“I hope you ignored them.”

“Would you calm down and come here?” Elena patted his pillow and he finally leaned back. “I told them I’d talk to you.”

“You my modeling agency now?” He smirked and Elena raised a judgmental brow. 

“Cool it, Fabio. They want you to be their ‘expert’ archeologist for the video series they do,  _ expert breaks down scenes from popular movies _ . You’re wanted simply for your brains. Not your looks.”

Nate flushed a little as he processed the news. “Maybe a little for my looks?” 

“Maybe.” Elena's chin came to rest on his shoulder. “I mean, I kinda fell for your looks.” 

“No, it was my wit that lured you in.”

“Hm, a little bit of both.” 

Nate took her hand in his. “What do you think, Mrs. Drake-Fisher?” 

“I think…. it’ll be good publicity for the show.” 

“If you’re gonna be there I want to do it.” 

“I’ll get back to them tomorrow and arrange something.” 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Before the events of Drake’s fortune at a local bar in Panama

“This seat taken?” 

Elena paid more mind to the empty stool on her left than the voice that came beside it. 

“I guess not.” She took a drink of the beer in her hand. She’d been quietly watching the bar from her little corner of the world. Hearing various stories about problems that aren’t hers and lives that she’s not a part of. People watching, it’s relaxing.

It’s not until a weight settles on the stool next to her and a hand brushes against her knee that she realizes someone is hitting on her.

“You don’t seem like the type to be here.” 

“Hm.” Elena shrugged, her eyes trained at the game of darts unfolding at the other side of the bar. One broad shouldered individual stood out. She’d been watching his hustle, throwing sloppy darts with a steady hand. 

He wasn’t subtle but it was enough to fool the drunk audience he’d amassed. The next round his darts magically hit the bullseye every time and Elena watched as the guys around emptied their pockets into his palm.

Elena shook her head and took another sip of cheap beer. 

“Some guys have all the luck.” The man next her said and she looked at him for the first time. He wasn't local, his skin pink from being fried in the sun and the souvenir necklace around his neck made him stick out like a sore thumb. 

“Yeah.” Elena slapped a tip on the bar and jumped from the stool. “Luck.” She scoffed. 

_ More like knows how to swindle a room of drunkards. _

“Hey, you here on vacation?” The voice she was trying to separate herself from called. 

Elena didn’t turn around. “No, I’m here for work.” She waved and headed for the door. She caught the eye of the con man in passing and he moved so she’d brush against his shoulder. 

“Have a good night.” He smirked and something in her chest swelled. He was even cuter up close. 

Elena looked at his newly full pockets. “Something tells me my night won’t be as good as yours.” 

“I’d say it’s better than that poor guy’s” He nodded toward the bar, “you left him in the dust.”

Elena adjusted the strap of her bag over her shoulder. “I’m not exactly here for pleasure.” She had an early morning tomorrow, but with the way this guy was looking at her and the tropical breeze rolling through the windows she could have a lapse in judgment. Live like she is on vacation just for tonight, then when the sun comes out it’s down to business: diving all day to meet Sir Francis. 

—

She took him to her hotel room, courtesy of production, and he isn’t shy. Wasting no time he crowds her against the door as soon as it’s closed. 

His lips taste like the same cheap beer she had, but they also taste like the sea and they definitely know what they're doing. When his hands wander away from the space of her waist Elena panics.

One cups her jaw while the other has a firm grip on the side of her hip. She feels good but the buzz is wearing off and casual sex is just not something she’s ever done. Despite herself, Elena catches his wrist with one hand and he slows to a stop, his blue eyes watching her carefully.

“Um,” she slapped a hand on his shoulder and it’s awkward for a beat. She mourned the loss of the sexual tension because it really was great. “I don’t know who I think I am.” She chuckled and his smile was surprisingly soft on her. 

“We’re just having fun.” He said with a calmness that eased the line between her brows. “It doesn’t have to go anywhere that’s  _ not _ fun.” a polite way of saying we don’t have to do anything you don’t want. 

He said it in a way that made Elena conscious of her age. She probably looked like a twenty-two year old way out of her depth. “I’ve had fun.” She said honestly, “but I don’t want to like, catch any diseases or whatever.” 

He took a step back, laughing. “Wow you have a high opinion of me.” 

“I just mean I don’t know you.” She compensated. “You’re a really good kisser.”

“And that’s all you’re gonna find out, I’m too offended to go on.” 

Elena flushed but laughed with him anyway. She was stupid to chase a drunken thrill. This guy was way better than her at reading the room anyway. She didn’t doubt for a second that he didn’t know what he was doing. 

“So how did you make out?”

“Huh?”

She rolled her eyes. “At the bar. Your dart hustle?”

“Oh, Right.” He patted his pockets and shrugged. “Decent I guess. Next round of drinks are on me.” 

“No offense, but I don’t think I’m gonna be drinking with you anytime soon.” She could never face him again, the humiliation would be too great,

He smirked at her. “Really? Not even to celebrate after we find Sir Francis Drake’s coffin?” 

Elena’s blood ran cold as she looked at the man in front of her with new eyes. It couldn’t be him. Her buzz was definitely gone now.

“Nathan Drake.” He held out his hand.

This was her job. The subject of her show. Elena cleared her throat and took his hand in an aggressive shake. “Mr. Drake.” she forced out, fixing her shirt and brushing the stray hairs behind her ear. 

”and you are the amazing Elena Fisher I’ve been seeing on tv.” 

She imagined him to be bookish and old. Most of her co hosts tend to have that profile since they’re experts in their field.

”We have a kind day ahead of us, Mr. Drake.”

”call me Nate.” 

Elena opened the door behind her and stepped to the side, showing him out. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Mr. Drake.”

“Bright and early, sunshine.”

Ohh, she wanted to punch him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed reading despite my grammar and spelling mistakes. If anyone feels inclined, I’d love to take any prompts or requests if you have any!


	7. Boiling Point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Uncharted: Drakes Fortune Elena is focused on her career and Nate is focused on Elena.

She’d cut her hair short.

Eraser shavings went every which way as Nate blew on the page. Muscle memory had taken over,  _ but she’d cut her hair short. _

Lead made contact on to paper again with new confident strokes, Nate’s eyes not even on the page anymore as he looked ahead. Focused on the difference in how Elena’s hair sat in a bun. The loose pieces coming up just a little higher than they did yesterday.

From where he sat stray blonde strands obscured one of her eyes from view. Nate bent his neck trying to get a better angle.

“Something interesting?” She didn’t take her eyes off the computer screen to look at him. She’s hunched over her laptop like always. Nate fantasied of smashing that thing to bits. There’d be a fight, Elena would be mad, but it would be worth it if he didn’t have to compete for her attention with it anymore. 

“You cut your hair.” 

Her fingers stilled on the keyboard and the clacking stopped making the room too quiet. “Yeah, I had an appointment yesterday.”

“Well, it’s thrown off my hand. I have to observe you all over again,” he complained. In reality he didn’t mind, but he was frustrated with her in other ways. 

“Tell your hand it was just a trim. Shouldn’t be that much different.” 

“Oh it’s different. You’re different.” 

For the first time in hours, she turned back to look at him. A part of him was elated that he’d earned some attention, another part of him sank at the sour face staring him down. 

Her eyes were dark and tired, he’d never drawn her like this before. His hand started moving on his sketchbook.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“You’re just—“ he erased a misplaced line. “Tired and cranky.” 

Her lips curved into a frown. “Yeah.” She nodded. “I am. Do you have any idea why?”

“You don’t sleep.” 

“I’m here working my ass off and you're on your ass doodling!” 

Nate took a second to look at his drawing and the image Elena painted before him. He captured her likeness well. Eye bags and all. 

Nate took time off. Skipped a job because he wanted to spend time with Elena. Sadly, the more they were stuck in her apartment the further they drifted apart. They were better off on their long distance phone calls…. but even the calls weren’t doing it for him anymore either. 

“Did you know you snore, Elena?” 

She turned back around at her desk, face crumpling into her hands. Nate watched her back carefully, hoping her breaths remained slow and even and not short and sporadic. He had not seen her cry yet, and he didn’t want to be the reason for it now- or ever.

“I have a stuffy nose.” She mumbled. “And a headache, and this paper is due tomorrow morning, but thank you Nate. I really needed to hear about my snoring problems right now.”

Nate liked Elena, but he never understood why she put herself through school when she didn’t have to. She was going for her masters in journalism and it’s been hell for both of them the last few weeks. 

“I’m here for a few more days and you’re worried about some paper? I doodle because it’s the only way I can be around you, besides listening to you snore all night.” 

“If my snoring is so much of a bother maybe you should go to a hotel, then.” 

“Might as well, you don’t let me get near you.” 

“Your face is too stubbly to kiss!”

“I’m too tired to shave!”

“Then go away and sleep! It’s not like you’re doing anything.”

“I can’t when the sun is out.”

“There are these cool things called curtains. You close them and the room gets dark.” 

Nate huffed, his teeth began to grind. She was insufferable. He looked over at his duffel bag on the floor. He could make a scene of grabbing it on the way out. He was ready for a quick getaway in any situation. Always ready to run when things got out of hand.

But something told him to stay. 

The Elenas in his journal were worn down and exhausted. Much like the one in front of him, tapping away on a keyboard and leaning over a thick textbook. She’s overworked, stressed, and sick.

If he left now, nothing would change. She’d still get that paper done at all costs, even if it meant harming herself to do it. 

That thought didn’t sit well with him.

Quietly, he left for the kitchen. Rummaging through her cabinets until he found the green tea she makes herself in the morning, he brewed a mug and grabbed a coaster (because goddamn it he wasn’t gonna give her something to complain about.) 

Nate slapped the coaster down on her desk and followed gently with the steaming mug. 

Elena’s brow furrowed as her eyes went from the tea, then up to Nate.

“Careful, it’s hot.” He’s not a doctor, but he knows how important fluids are and… whatever.

Elena’s mouth opened in surprise. She looked back down at the mug. “Thank you,” she cleared her throat. “Thanks, Nate.” She took a small sip, and with it some tension eased out of her. 

Her soft tone was much more validating than it should have been. Nate dared to get closer. His hands rested on her shoulders, thumbs rubbing small circles as he feigned interest on the boring black and white text on the monitor.

He hated that she was taking these classes and what they did to her, but she wanted to do it. ”you almost done?” 

“In the home stretch.” She sighed and leaned back into his touch. Nate smiled to himself, the feeling of doing something right streamlining dopamine straight to his brain. The thought of running away now a long forgotten option. 

A tiny hand reached for his wrist. Nate froze around the contact, it was soft. Barely there. 

“I’m sorry for being a jerk.” 

Nate spun her chair around and got on a knee so he could see her face. Eyes red and swollen, but she held those tears of frustration in. 

“You think that was being a jerk?” Nate scoffed. “I’ve had girlfriends steal from me, punch me, shoot at me, and leave me for dead. You are not even close to a jerk.” 

Elena’s hand came to cup the side of his face, despite there being too much stubble. “By those definitions, I think you need to re-evaluate the term girlfriend.” He expected her to smile, but she didn’t. 

Nate felt as if he was sinking through the floor. He looked at Elena and then back at the bed he’d been sleeping in for the last few weeks. A bed where he’d been awake, listening to god awful snoring, but he stayed. He felt safe and comfortable next to Elena, even if they weren’t getting along. 

His brain almost short circuited at the realization that he could be settling down. Did he want to settle down?

He turned back to Elena, she was still looking at him. A tear had left a wet track down her cheek

“Hey,” He thumbed away the offending dampness, “things would probably be easier if you did try to kill me.” He knew that situation well and how to handle it.  _ Run.  _

She shoved him away but did crack a smile. “Right. That would be a nice stress reliever.” 

“Hey, if I had a nickel for every time I heard that.”

“You’d what? Never have to treasure hunt again?”

Nate raised his eyebrows. “Wow. Are you getting your sense of humor back?” 

Elena shugged, leaning back in her chair with an easy smile on her face. Unshed tears, thankfully, evaporated. “Just wishful thinking.” 

Nate grabbed onto her thighs to roll her in close. His teeth biting into his lip as he smirked at their newfound lack of personal space. He had something else in mind that could be a great stress reliever.

Elena’s eyes responded in kind; pupils were blown, and half-lidded as she looked down at him. Her lips parted with a sudden breath. Nate’s hands skimmed up until his fingertips slipped just beneath the hem of her shirt. Her skin, warm and soft. 

Her hand came up to the side of his face again, grounding him with a stroke of a thumb against his cheek. He looked up and smiled at the gentle eyes on his own. 

“In a weird way you are a really good guy, Nate.” 

“Uh, thanks.” 

“You’re welcome.” Elena straightened in her chair, scooting to the edge and taking Nate’s hand into hers. “You making me tea, that was sweet.” 

“Well, don’t go around advertising it. I have a reputation to uphold, y’know.” And if he knew it’d melt her into his arms he would’ve done it sooner.

“Dare I say it was thoughtful, Drake.” 

“Oh no.” He collapsed, his head dead weight in her lap.

Not even a second went by before her fingers were raking through his hair. It felt nice but was meant to ease the hit of rejection that was coming. 

“When I get this paper done—“

“Nooooooo.” His plea was muffled into her leg. _This stubborn girl_ , “Take a break.” 

“I can’t rest until it’s done. Nate, I’m at the conclusion!”

“So…?”

“You’re very pouty, you know?”

“You’ve ignored me for weeks… I’m allowed to pout.” 

“You came at a bad time.” Nate glared back up at her. “What? You did!”

Exasperated, Nate peeled himself away. “Maybe I’ll close a curtain or two and take that nap.” 

“Nate.”

“No, I gotta get ready for Nova Scotia next week. So you know, I better rest up.” 

“Would you just wait?” He paused halfway to the door and looked back. Elena had more life in her face, color in her cheeks and amusement in her eyes. “I’m gonna make it work.”

“Huh?”

“Our schedules are out of sync and frankly, a mess.”

“Oh, really?” Nate found out the hard way that dating a student with a full time job was damn near impossible. Their phone calls became brief and during his time in town they’d only gotten on each other’s nerves. He’s not used to sticking it out when the going gets tough, especially with women, but losing Elena felt like losing a lot more than just a girl. 

Elena sighed, “it has to get better.” 

“You could just… drop out.” 

“Ha! Not a chance.” 

Nate waved a hand at her in defeat. “Drink your tea, sickie.”

Elena closed her laptop and headed for the window.

“What are you doing?” 

Elena closed her bedroom curtains. “Compromising.” She turned toward the bed and crawled into the messed up covers. “You’re right. Im being stubborn, sleep would do us some good.” 

Nate didn’t waste time to join her, tossing his journal off the bed when he felt that he was laying on it. “I like compromise.” He sighed, completely content on the soft mattress with the warm body sidled up next to him. 

“If my snoring is too much there’s earplugs in the bathroom…”

“That would’ve been some very nice information like, a month ago.” 

Elena hid, pushing her forehead into his chest. “I didn’t know I was snoring that bad.” 

He tucked some loose strands of hair behind her ear, resting his chin on top of her head. “It’s okay. Now tell me I’m right again.”

”Shut up.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you @lastyearsmodel for the prompt! I had fun thinking of many different scenarios but landed on this one where you could see the early cracks of their relationship and how they eventually end up where they are at the start of Among Thieves :) I hope you enjoyed it


	8. expectations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not necessarily canon compliant, but this chapter does take place after Drake’s Fortune. I just wanted to write silly pining, hope you enjoy :)

Gold was the expectation, but what he left with was better. 

Sully scored an absurd amount of treasure and without having to pay off his debt with Gabriel Roman he was filthy rich. They all were… 

Nate’s share was in a comical looking trunk that made it look exactly like pirate treasure seen in movies, but he was busy looking over on the other side of the room at the door to his hotel bathroom. Steam rolled from the cracks and carried along with it a soft tune. 

Nate smiled to himself, Elena liked to sing in the shower, but all she'd let him hear was restrained humming. It seemed silly to be shy about that after what they’d been through together. 

But in truth they hadn’t known each other for very long, and Nathan abused her trust right off the bat by leaving her behind at the docks. He didn’t think about what that would mean long term, suddenly his chest felt heavy. He doesn’t think about anything long-term anymore. 

Perhaps now that they weren’t trapped on a cursed island, being hunted by pirates, she really didn’t want anything to do with him and her room’s shower really  _ was _ out of order.

But that seemed unlikely. 

Then again, slimy zombies and cursed treasure were just as unlikely…

Nate turned to look at his share by the desk. Sully was resourceful when it came to finding money, how he had time to swipe all this stuff (at his age!) Nate’ll never know. It certainly was pretty, shining in the filtered sun from the window. Lots of gold, lots of books and artifacts on the black market to spend it on (bills too).

The shower squeaked off and Nate felt himself straightening. He didn’t know how she’d be coming out of there, towel on? Towel off? Did she have a change of clothes? He really should’ve paid attention to see. Wait, why would towel off even be an option?

If it were up to him he wouldn’t have minded taking another shower, but Elena seemed pretty anxious to get clean. And getting clean would _not_ be on his agenda.

Nate sighed and averted his gaze from the door. He should pretend to do something, act like he wasn’t listening to her hum in the shower or drop a bottle of soap. 

There wasn’t much else to do though, Sully was down at the bar and Nate wasn’t ready for celebratory drinks just yet. 

Hell, he was still in his underwear. 

Elena emerged with a sigh, wrapped in a fluffy white towel. Her smile lazy and pleasant. 

“Wow, Thanks,” she said and Nate laughed.

“Well it was the least I could do.” 

“Oh don’t worry, I’m not forgetting that story you owe me anytime soon, Mr Drake.” She warned and there it was.  _ Mr drake _ , that was what she called him when they had their first meeting. It’s still hilarious to hear.

“I’m completely serious about that offer,” 

“No doubt,” she said before she shrugged her shoulders in close and looked around. “Well, I might head off to my room and take a nap…”

“A nap?” 

She winced but nodded, “I’m beat.” 

He was too, but he didn’t want to admit it. “It’s been a long trip.” 

“Yeah,” she exasperated. Her eyes fell on him then and they were kind, gentle even. A warmth bloomed in Nate’s chest and he was happy that she didn’t resent him in any way, now if he could just not screw this up. “Well, if you need me,” she trailed off, pointing to her adjoining room, “I’ll be over here.”

Nate nodded, “Napping.”

Elena smiled, “Right.” 

When her door closed he groaned and threw himself back on the stiff hotel bed. 

He was exhausted but still thrumming with energy at the same time. His mind wrapping around the idea of going on another trip with Elena, and how she was just a thin hotel wall away. 

Before he did something to ruin their future meetings, Nate reached for his journal and connected pencil to paper. This _exhaustion_ he felt wasn’t leading him to sleep anytime soon. 


	9. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anxiety is at an all time high as Elena comes home from Tibet. Set after Uncharted 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has a lot of angst, maybe too much for anyone’s liking? Just putting this here as a warning, I know Uncharted is normally more upbeat and fun so feel free to tell me if this doesn’t feel right or true to the characters

Elena couldn’t decide if she was happy to be alone, it had been so long she’d thought she’d miss it, but looking at her plain apartment the solitude overwhelmingly buried her.

Everything was lined with a fine layer of dust, other than that it was just as she left it a month ago. Duffel bag dropped by her feet, she walked to the kitchen to water the cactus who didn’t miss a beat while she was gone. 

Everything was, indeed, the same.

In her bedroom the bed was made and cold looking. Books held neatly on shelves and her laptop folded closed on her desk. 

Elena shook out of her jacket, her skin suddenly hot and itchy under the bandages.

Her apartment was the same, but she wasn’t.

She heard the front door open behind her, a relief flooded her chest. She wasn’t alone anymore.

“That’s it, all the bags in one trip. Tell me you’re impressed.” 

Elena shrugged her jacket back on before turning around to see Nate looking like a pack mule. 

“Right now I’m just worried about your back.”

With a big thud, the three bags he had strapped to each arm fell around his feet. “You were impressed.” 

“Mmhmm.” 

“Everything good? Just as you left it?”

“Yep.” Elena shrugged as she looked around her place that felt more foreign to her than Tibet was. “No one bothered to rob me.” 

“Thieves must’ve not known you were gone for a good few weeks.” 

“Or they were all too busy backstabbing each other in a race to Shambhala.” 

Nate tensed at that and Elena dropped her gaze to the floor. Maybe it wasn’t her place to say that. At home in the states, it’s not like they shared a life anymore. The people he has in his life are not her business, though one nearly killed her. 

“I meant it as a joke.” She said when he didn’t speak but it felt like it just made things worse.

“I know,” Nate nodded. “Just forgot to laugh, I guess.” 

Her left side began to burn and itch uncomfortably, “No, it was a bad joke. Uhm, thanks for helping me get my bags in.” 

Nate cleared his throat, “It's the least I could do, and it’s a load off my mind knowing you’re settled in.” 

She could unpack all her stuff and she still wouldn’t be settled. “I’m gonna move.” 

Nate’s eyes went wide on her before his brows collapsed in confusion. “But this is your place, you’ve been here for years.” 

“Yeah, since before I met you.” Elena wanted to kick herself for the way Nate’s lip trembled after she said that. “I—“ damn it, tears burdened her eyes and she couldn’t shake them. “I can’t be here anymore.” She wanted him to understand, but she couldn’t speak more, not without sobbing.

“You don’t like it here?” 

She took a hold of her left arm and shook her head, avoiding eye contact. This apartment was a reminder of the person she was before Tibet. Before Lazaravich and Jeff and Tenzin and Pema, her side ached more and more. 

Nate stopped hesitating and she felt crowded in his arms. He held her tightly, like he was keeping her chest from bursting open.

Her hands fumbled, desperately taking purchase on his shirt- or anything she could get a hold of. 

There was a part of her that resented this, the need to be held together, but having a shoulder to cry into was the deepest comfort she could indulge in right now. 

His hand was big and warm and she could feel it smooth over her heaving back. “We don’t need to stay here,” he chanted softly into her ear. “Not even for tonight.”

Elena twisted her fingers in his shirt, taking an evening breath, consoled more by the use of ‘we’ than staying somewhere else for the night. He never said if he was going to stay with her when they got to the states. “But, all the bags—“

“Are you kidding? I already showed you I got the bags. I own the bags. The bags are nothing, don’t worry about the bags.” 

Eyes swollen and cheeks tear stained, Elena pressed a smile into his chest. Unwilling to let go yet, she let out something that could be considered a laugh, “you sure? I might be the biggest one.” 

She knew she wasn’t okay, coming home only confirmed that. She healed the majority of her wounds in Tenzin’s home. Waking up to roosters and a clamoring village every morning, reading with Pema, and being by Nate’s side every night as they healed together. Home felt hollow. It felt like a place without Nathan.

Her hand came to hover over his side where he was shot. 

“You’re hardly baggage, Elena.” Nate’s hand came to the back of her neck, encouraging her to come out of the crook of his shoulder. She reluctantly gave in and took a deep breath to look him in the eyes. 

“Look at me, Nate. You’ve been a caretaker not a boyfriend the past week.” Her bandages (that needed to be changed frequently) wrapped all around her arm, side, and hip and thigh. The whole left side of her body burned and beaten into hamburger meat. 

She was a burden and she hated it, but she couldn’t just pretend she wasn’t anymore. Bathing, getting places, she needed help with basic things and her healing process was going at a glacial pace compared to his gunshot wound.

“I can be both, stop acting like this is forever.” 

“It’s going to be a long time.” 

“Good thing I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon.” 

The fear in her chest doubted that. Nate needed that thrill of adventure. He survived on it. She left him once already for it. 

“We need to talk.” 

“I agree.” 

“It’s not going to be easy.” 

Nate gave out a frustrated groan, “Stop trying to get rid of me!” 

A fresh sting of tears rushed down her red cheeks. “Trust me, that is the last thing I want. I need to know, for  **_certain_ ** , that this is what you want. Like I said, it’s not going to be easy.” 

Nate cupped her cheek, his eyes unfaltering on hers, “I’m not losing you, okay? I can’t lose you. You might think you’re baggage but I need you just as much as you need me.” 

That lifted the cloud of fear haunting her. Hearing the words that were so hard for him to admit. It felt like hearing a certain four letter word.

“Okay then.” 

His lips pressed sweetly into her forehead, “okay then.” 

Elena bumped this good side of her hip into him, “so, I’m looking for a roommate...”


	10. Plastic stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Timeline is just after Drake’s Fortune, Elena visits Nate’s apartment for the first time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m bumping up the rating to M for this one. Warning for those not wanting to read crude sexual content. 
> 
> No explicit ‘acts’ are described in detail, but I do think this chapter pushes past the T rating
> 
> Tl;dr: it’s a smutty chapter, I’m sorry I used the word c*ck😭

When they entered his apartment, no time was wasted. Elena blindly stumbled where Nate was leading her. 

She vaguely remembered dropping her bag somewhere, quickly forgotten along the way as he pressed on, hurriedly, anxiously, pushing back until she saw they were in his bedroom. 

She’ll get the official apartment tour later. 

She sighed as he pushed her onto the mattress, too busy staring at Nate pulling off his shirt to see how bare his room truly was or how many of his things were still piled up in cardboard boxes. There was a rush as he hovered over, pressing humid kisses to her neck. 

Elena’s eyes fluttered, unfocused. Absentmindedly, she caught a look at the plastic stars puttied to the ceiling. 

She smiled, uncertain of what the rest of his place looked like, but she liked that he had these stupid glow in the dark stars. She could even see Ursa Minor mapped out with stars in varied sizes. He liked astronomy too. 

“Shit,  _ shit.”  _ Echoed against the delicate skin on her neck.

“Hm?” Her hand soothed up his back that was now tense. Nate was hot, a human furnace, and her hands were always cold, she curled her icicle fingers around his sides to steal as much heat as she could.

Sometimes he would whine, but now he didn’t even flinch. His hands squeezed  _ hard _ at her hips as he let out a frustrated sigh. 

“I need to get my bag from the car- for a stupid condom…” he muttered, and in her haze Elena didn’t mind just laying there with him a bit longer.

Maybe it was too sentimental for this- whatever they were- but Elena liked cuddling— especially with Nate. Raking her fingers through his hair, exploring how and where to touch him to get the biggest reaction from him, like a human puzzle she liked figuring out.

There was always a constant battle with him racing to the finish line and Elena dragging, slowing him down. He never did anything without intention. If he had one thing on his mind that was it and he was going for it, and Elena was always there to challenge him on that. 

Though he was pretty desperate now and already fishing for the shirt he’d just discarded. 

“I’ll be back, don't try to rob me blind.”

Elena scoffed, but when he left her smile faded. Nate told her he didn’t take many people to his place.

She wondered just how many times Nate’s been double crossed by someone he considered a friend, and how many times it would take before he realized he needed to do something else with his life.

How many real friends did he have? 

So far Elena had counted Sully. 

He burst through the door in a huff, eyes still buried in a dark haze, a small square package landed right beside her head where Nate tossed it. He hurried to rip off his shoes. Elena sat up and took the condom in hand to fidget.

“You’re still wearing clothes? Why are you still wearing clothes? What were you doing all this time?”

“The whole ten seconds you were gone?” Elena mused to hide the fact she was stupidly worrying about him.

He’s a thief. It’s the life he wanted, and that life is lonely. It’s what he chose and she had no business changing it. 

Elena steeled herself and scooted back toward the pillows. “What would you have me do in ten seconds?”

He gave a familiar lop-sided smirk and crawled over her, a finger displacing the strap of her tank top. “In this instance, I wouldn’t have minded if you started without me.” 

Elena bit her lip, trying her best not to roll her eyes and ruin his moment. 

They’d been having sex- _ a lot _ . The back of her mind screamed at her, it’s just the adrenaline. She was starting to wonder when all of that Panama excitement would be spent and she didn’t have the want to be by Nate anymore. 

He’s a tomb robber, her brain would endlessly repeat. He lived a dangerous life with no friends or family. Nothing about that seemed like faithful boyfriend material, so it had to be the adrenaline that made him attractive. 

_ But _ it’s early enough to where she didn’t have to think about labels. They weren’t anything, and who knows, tomorrow she could be done with him and be flying back home by the evening. 

Nate sucked at the hollow of where her neck met her shoulder and she flustered and twisted at the dirty nothings whispered in her ear. 

He could really get her worked up in a hurry, to his benefit, of course. 

Nate undid the button to her shorts and slipped them off. Elena remembered the condom still in her closed fist. 

With firm conviction, she pushed up against him until he followed along and rolled onto his back. Elena straddled him, deftly removing his belt and jeans, acutely ignoring his hard on. 

She crawled back over him, tasting his lips, slowing the pace to enjoy him and he protested with a whine. Hands settled on her hips, he forced her down against him and she grunted. 

“Excuse you.” 

“No,” he almost made a move to roll them over but didn’t push it when Elena held her place, “no games, I just want you.” 

His cock was hot and damp, pressed against her inner thigh. Nate’s hand covered her fist, the one holding the condom. 

“Please,” He shuddered, aware he was at her mercy. Elena coaxed a long, drawn out kiss from him before sitting up and tearing the foil package. 

She stroked him, feeling him before he was lost in slick latex.

  
  
  


_ Afterward _ , Nate draped an arm over her, filling her ear with soft, drowsy mumblings as she stared up to the plastic Ursa Minor on his ceiling. 

The sex was always great, the aftermath was also great, the casual banter- great, Nate was  _ great… _ to Elena’s disappointment.

She wanted to tire of him, but that was impossible. 

“I gotta restock,  _ hmph _ , I’ll need to grocery shop in the morning.” He mumbled into her shoulder, his fingers tracing lazy nonsense over her side.

“I’ll go with.” 

He stilled.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Because grocery shopping sucks.”

“I’ll make it fun.”

He didn’t argue, but his arm tightened around her. She took that as a sign he wanted her to stay a while, and she found herself wanting the same thing. 

God, she wanted to know him. Learn more about his past, his family, if he did in fact have any real friends. If not, it was all the more reason to stay, wasn’t it? 

Elena held Nate back and soothed a hand through his hair, overwhelmed with the amount of care she garnered for him in such a short amount of time.

Then again, intense situations can breed intense relationships, maybe after the minutiae of grocery shopping and laundry and doing the dishes Elena could see Nate for what he is and leave this thing just as it was: a no-strings-attached fling. 

But he was holding onto her  _ tight _ . He wasn’t letting go and neither could she.

_ Damn it. _


	11. Domestic Bliss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set after uncharted 2 but before uncharted 3. Just as the chapter title says, newly weds share domestic bliss while getting to their new home. Hope you enjoy :)
> 
> Inspiration from a comment request by @acalmingcupoftea a while back, thank you!!

The smell was down-right intoxicating. Elena found herself gravitating toward it until she caught herself. There was too much to do, she shook her head, blew the strand of hair out of her eyes, and put in the elbow grease to scrub the wall clean. 

The previous renters were smokers, and the poor walls were the only things left to tell their stories. Black and filthy, in the corners specifically, and Elena had to put in the muscle to scrub it clean. 

She found her footing on the step ladder, got her warm soapy rag from the bucket, and worked away. The smell of freshly baked cookies taunt her every move from the kitchen, telling her how she’s spending her Saturday very wrong.

The front door crashed open and closed in the same manner, Nate using his hip to finish the job since his arms were full with boxes. Elena couldn’t even see his face. 

“Careful, don’t want to upset the neighbors.” 

“They know we’re moving in, they should know what noises to expect.” A voice emitted from the boxes. “Jesus.” Nate set aside his arm load on the counter in favor of a plate of cookies Julia Child would be proud of. “You do some baking while I was gone?” 

“No, that’s the reason you’re not gonna want to upset our new neighbors.” Elena dropped the rag back into the bucket with a splash as she stepped down the ladder, hands already running through her hair to redo her bun. “A nice lady next door, Mrs Patterson, welcomed us to the neighborhood.” 

“Aw, and I missed her. What a shame.” Nate wasted no time to grab a cookie. Before Elena could stop him he had already taken a bite. Instantaneously, his eyes fluttered shut, moaning as he leaned into the counter. “That’s a good cookie.” 

Elena whimpered. She’d meant for that to be a reward to fully enjoy once all their to-dos were done and they could relax. The instant gratification of eating a cookie wasn’t such a big deal, so Elena shook it off. 

“Just don’t eat them all.” She admonished. 

Nate opened his eyes at that, narrowing curiously at her. “You haven't had one yet?” He straightened his shoulders and bit down on a blooming grin on his face. “Isn’t that rude?”

“Mrs Patterson left quickly. She knew we had a lot of work to do— and we do so get back out there and bring the rest of your crap in.” 

“Wow,” Nate took another, obnoxious, bite of his cookie. “ _ Crap _ ? You’re calling my stuff crap, now?” 

“Yeah, and there sure is a lot of it, Nate.”

“Well, you married me so my crap is your crap.” 

Elena glanced at the boxes he left on the counter. Masking tape stuck onto each of them with the initials  _ N.D _ . She did love those boxes of crap, but he had about fifty others and their new house was pretty small, even for a starter home. 

“Is there any way that  _ maaaybe _ Sully can keep some things for you?” Elena approached carefully, casually walking to the sink to wash her hands from all the cleaning she’d done. 

Nate shifted, the corner of his mouth pulling down as he made himself busy looking through one of the boxes. “He’s kind of done with all my crap.” 

Elena dried her hands and joined him. Nothing but odds and ends. Broken treasures and things that would probably be better off in a museum, but they’re things that Nate has found and that means something. 

Nate grew up without a family but these things that he’s found gave him something Elena couldn’t just call crap. They’re hugely sentimental to him. For somewhat of a nomad, he was a huge pack rat, and Elena noted the pains he took to keep all his little finds and treasures.

She picked up an ancient Tibetan singing bowl to better see the patterns painted on the side, memories of Tenzin’s village sprang up. “Then we will have to rent a storage garage because this place is just too little for it all, Nate.” 

His arm hung around her shoulders and Elena let herself lean into him. She wanted to broach the unspeakable subject: what was he gonna do for a job now? But as much as she wanted to discuss, it could wait for a better time.

“I guess I’ll put these back in the trailer then?”

Elena chuckled at the ancient artifacts dusting up their newly cleaned countertops. “Maybe get the boxes labeled ‘kitchen’.”

“Right, that makes sense.” He blushed, closing up one of the boxes before stacking them up again. “You wanna put that back in here,” he asked before leaving.

Elena played with the bowl in her hands, “I think this will be nice on the mantle.” She ran over to the fireplace to show off what she’d done already. 

“Oh, hey!” Nate pointed to the frames she’d just set up, “our wedding pictures?!”

“I just picked them up this morning. They look good, huh?”

“If I do say so myself,” he looked fondly at the frames. “I like remembering that day.” 

Elena didn’t take her eyes off him. “Me too.” 

She could’ve sworn she saw his eyes water, just a tiny bit, but he moved fast. Leaving the boxes behind to take her in his arms and kiss her. 

It was nice and way better than any home baked cookie. “We should do it again.” He took her left hand in his, playing with the ring around her finger. 

“Get married? I think that’s a one and done kind of deal.” 

Nate nodded, slowly crowding her back until she hit the damp wall she’d just cleaned. “You’re right. The wedding is done but we’re gonna fill this whole house up with pictures and all those family photo albums you have, we can make our own.” 

“That sounds like a pretty good idea.” Elena tried to swallow the huge knot in her throat, there wasn’t much time before Nate’s lips consumed her once more. 

Much like the discussion of his employment, the discussion of a baby could wait, but it sounded an awfully lot like he wanted one just then and the thought of it made Elena bury her hand in his hair to tug him closer and open the kiss.

Yep, way better than a cookie break. 


	12. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the events of Uncharted 4, Nate and Elena reach an understanding in their hotel room

Her body aches from climbing, unused muscles quiver and pulse beneath her skin. Despite a quick change of clothes on Sully’s plane, she is filthy. Her split lip healing but still tasting of iron, she wants to drop into a tub and scrub away the grim scent of death and old pirate greed. 

As she drops her bag she thinks about her ruined jeans, stained with blood and gunpowder and bits of exploded mummy; her ears still ringing from the unexpected blasts.

She'll need new boots as well. Still, there is a fondness she has for these old crusted ones. She peels one foot out from then the other, fighting the urge to sit on the edge of the bed because once she does she’s not getting up. 

It's a labor intensive process to shed the rest of her clothes. Elena winces as a pulled muscle in her back protests; there is a long, shallow cut which stretches from her right shoulder to her left hip, the edge of a rock had grazed her as she slid down to Nate.

At the time she couldn't feel it throb as she threw herself down to Nate's side to make sure he was still breathing. 

Assessing herself, it’s clear she’s going to be sore for the rest of the year. 

"You’re hurt." Nate says trailing after her. 

Elena lifts her head, surprised to see Nate standing at the entrance of the cramped hotel room already done getting tickets for their flight home tomorrow. He is as tired and battered as she is, a dark bruise and dried blood shadowing his forehead, he looks just how she feels. 

Allowing his insecurities to show, he doesn’t stand so tall when he’s tired and guilty. 

Elena lifts her arms to cover her chest and some injuries to preserve some sense of modesty. “Nothing time won’t fix.” She slips into the bathroom to quickly wrap a towel around herself. 

Nate is cautious, keeping a distance, but his eyes are on her. Pleading for something from her. “I could’ve taken care of that on the plane.” 

“There was no time, you were bleeding out.” A devastating gash over his abdomen. There’s not much holding him together, just some surgical tape and a few bandages. An impromptu fix with the first aid kit sully kept around. “What I have is a scratch.” She can take a shower and clean it up.

For the first time since their cab ride here, Nate steps in close, his hand caressing the blooming bruise where a shoreline soldier’s fist connected with her jaw. “Jesus, would you just let me take care of you?” 

Elena gives way to a chuckle, “Aw, that’s sweet.” 

“You’re smiling. I’ll take a smile.”

Elena scrunches her nose at that. “I was smiling on the docks too.”

“Yeah, but Sam and Sully were there.”

Elena brushes his hand away and turns to rummage through her bag. “Nate, I’m going to say this so it’s very clear. When we get home I don’t want you to pack up and move out, alright?”

“Alright.” He says too softly.

“ _ Meaning _ , don’t walk on eggshells around me.”

“Oh.” 

“Ah!” She finally found it, a suture kit. “Now lay down on the bed.” 

“Oh?”

She looks back to see his eyebrows raised practically to his hairline. She pats the side of the bed and holds out the kit so he can see. “Just call me Dr. Fisher.”

“Thanks but Dr Fisher already patched me up.” 

“That patch job was meant to get you to the hotel.” Elena lets out a sharp breath seeing a red spot blooming on his white sweater. “Nate you’re already bleeding through. You need stitches.” 

He relinquishes and nods in defeat, taking his place with a pained wince. He lifts up his shirt and Elena gets busy taking off his soiled bandages, careful not to hurt him more. 

The gash is red and violent and deep. Elena can’t picture Rafe Adler doing this but if he was as crazed as Nate described…

Elena shakes her head and cleans her hands and the wound before starting to stitch.

Nate is as well practiced as she is. He’s tense from the incoming pain but keeps still and is strangely calm. “Your hands have always been steady.”

Elena spares him a glance for that comment before continuing on her careful work. “I grew up around cameras. It’s important to have a steady hand.”

“But even when I put a gun in your hand, you never even hesitated. You have steady hands. It’s nice, it’s life saving.”

Elena scoffs and rolls her eyes. “Ok, you’re laying the compliments on a little thick here.” 

“Maybe, but I do mean it. Besides, I have to make up for it.”

“What?”

“Lying to you.”

Elena almost put the needle down but instead she keeps going, not wanting to prolong what must be very uncomfortable for him. “Compliments won’t make up for that.” She clears her throat, cuts away the excess suture thread, and begins sterilizing the instruments to put them away. 

“Speaking of when you put a gun in my hand in Panama? It hurt when you left me out on those docks. That was  _ our  _ expedition and you cut me out. It hurt enough for me to go out and find you just to spite you. When you lied about trailing Lazaravich and when you jumped the fence in Yemen to keep me from harm's way, it felt like you were cheating me from something.” 

“I never wanted to take anything from you, I wanted  _ so _ badly to give you a normal life.” 

Elena shakes her head, her thoughts rushing in so fast she can’t process them all. Nate takes her hand and she focuses on him. “Our normal life wasn’t working for me.” She finally confesses the obvious. Says it out loud so there’s no ignoring it. “I don’t want to be stuck doing tourist pamphlets and travel guides forever.” 

Elena sighs and tapes a fresh bandage on and pulls his shirt back down. “And you don’t want to be pulling garbage out of a river forever.” 

“Now that we are being honest with our midlife crisis, what are we gonna do about it?”

They share a laugh and Elena leans in with her elbows on the bed. “I’m still thinking about that part. We’ll figure it out.” 

“Even still, I'll take a normal life if it means getting more time with you. I made my choice and I’m happy with it.” 

Elena’s cheeks flush with a sudden heat and she leans in to kiss his lips. Still rough and chapped, but no less sweet.

Her hand is idle in his hair, casually raking through, “Hm yes, but I want to have my cake and eat it too.” 

“Don’t get greedy,” Nathan muses with an insistent hand tugging the towel she’s in. “We learned what happens when we get greedy.” 

She does feel greedy and it’s taking all her willpower not to give in and lay in bed with him. 

She turns away, keeping his lips from hers but they just find purchase on her neck. “I need to shower.” She says and she’s already breathless.

“Me too.” He replies as if he’s not short on blood and won’t rip a stitch. 

“You rest.” She reasons but Nate is still tugging on her towel, inching her closer and closer to getting on top of him— which she won’t, that will probably hurt him more than he realizes right now. 

Elena takes his hands in her’s and pins them to his sides, “stay, please.” She pleads and presses a chaste kiss to his cheek. “I’m begging you, let me get clean.” 

He smirks and Elena wasn’t expecting anything less from him. “But you make it sound so dirty.” 

“I’m leaving you now.” She cuts off contact like ripping off a bandaid and shuffles off to the bathroom. 

“Please hurry!” She can hear him shout, but she half hopes he’ll be fast asleep when she’s done. He really does need to rest. 


	13. To get over someone...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Post drakes fortune, post break up, pre among thieves :)
> 
> Mandatory disclaimer: I don’t know what this evolved into so apologies, it is a mess but as I spiraled writing it I did have a lot of fun lol 
> 
> It involves breakup s*x and alcohol so steer clear if those are things you like to avoid!!

The odds of just dipping in for a drink, a quick hello, and leaving weren’t looking good. 

The party was more than just the production crew, the higher ups were here too, the people in name-brand designer ties and heels and expensive watches. Elena tracked down familiar faces but was stopped by self important suits at every turn. 

They wanted to hear about the next project she was producing, but she failed to mention that the only future plans she had was leaving their company-  _ annd _ investigating NATO and their inconsistent reporting. 

She spotted Jeff at the other end of the hall taking a champagne flute from a passing waiter, bogged down by a wall of suits himself. He was red in the face and she could tell he was struggling with keeping his two week notice to himself. 

Jeff knew they were leaving for something better, but it was also something uncertain. 

Elena smiled graciously to her hosts and took a sip of her own champagne, the bubbles getting caught in her throat when she heard the word ‘fund’.

She poised herself, “pardon?” 

“Your work is quite ambitious.” 

“And admirable,” another suit added and rested his hand on her shoulder. “You may not see us everyday working with you, but we notice you Miss Fisher. All the work you’ve done for a show that should’ve failed at the start, but you didn’t give up on it.”

Heat crept up her chest and neck, Elena cleared her throat. “ _Uncharted_ was a highlight of my career. I loved working on it every second and I learned so much but—“

“But you’ve stopped learning.” He finished for her. “You got bored.” 

Elena saw the people in the suits look at her with great interest. These people were nothing but a name on a business card to her, people who cut her budget to hell in favor of some home renovation series. “I know how to produce a show and bring information to people,” She said with gratitude, “because of _Uncharted_. I am sad to see it go.” 

One of her bosses nodded, “You’re a racehorse, you need to be pushed, Elena Fisher. You need work hard in order to function and I think you’d be interested in some pitches we have for a new show we want in production by next spring.”

Elena couldn’t hold it together anymore, not after this stranger likened her to a horse. “I’m sorry, but I don’t plan to be here in the spring. Now that _Uncharted_ is over my contract is up.” 

_ Owen,  _ she thought, the guy who introduced himself as Owen spoke up. “We’re aware your contract is up, which is why we are trying to entice you with a new pitch.” He clarified.

“Oh.” Elena feigned interest and took a much needed sip of champagne. “Awesome.” 

Once they got what they wanted to hear they were all smiles and lining up to shake her hand. “Our people will get in touch with your department.” 

“Great.” Elena said, itching to take off her heels and sprint the other direction to the nearest bar. She settled for keeping an eye out for Jeff. She needed to talk with him, desperately. 

The hall was loaded and Elena was twisting shoulder to shoulder to nudge through just to find some space, but it was getting more crowded the further she got. 

A particularly strong shove to her back lunged her forward and launched her hard into the suit in front of her. 

“Sorry, my fault.” She dislodged the side of her face from the man’s chest. She couldn’t see anything, these close quarters and her short height was not an advantage here.

She could see her empty champagne glass though…. and the mess she’d made on what looked like a very expensive dress shirt and tie. “Shit,” she cursed under her breath and tried to bat away most of the spill that was running down his suit and onto the floor anyway. 

His wet shirt stuck to him like glue and with her hand splayed out on his chest she was shocked to feel how firm it was. 

“It’s okay. The suit isn’t mine anyway” uttered a familiar voice, ”I’m borrowing from a friend.” 

Elena snapped her hand off his chest as if it had burned her, looking up to see the blue eyes she missed so much. 

The surrounding crowd moved and nudged around them, forcing Elena closer to him when she tried to lean away. 

“Hi Nate.” She kept her tone neutral all while her heart was hammering in her rib cage like it wanted to escape and make a run for it. 

“Elena.” He nodded and placed a hand on her waist. Before she could argue he was ushering her along at his side. Like an elegant bulldozer he weaved expertly through the crowd, cutting where he could and using his size to push through when needed until they found themselves on the outskirts of the party with some room to breathe. 

Or so Elena thought, her dress was feeling tighter and tighter and breaths more shallow. 

He looked good—great even. Clean shaven and no recent injuries, none that she could see anyway. Nate’s suit was nice and clearly ‘borrowed’, something that expensive yet it wasn’t tailored to fit him. The buttons on his shirt were hanging on for dear life over his chest and the arms on his jacket were a little short. 

Elena shook her head in disbelief, “Nate, what are you doing here?” 

His face was the definition of innocence, wide, clear blue eyes and the faintest hint of a smile on his parted lips. Elena found herself standing close to him even though there wasn’t a crowd pushing them together anymore. 

“A job.” He said simply, mouth still ajar with surprise. “You look  _ very  _ fancy.” 

Elena chewed the inside of her cheek, not wanting to blush at his words but she felt the heat rise up her neck. Nate has never seen her in heels before. 

“And you’re not so bad yourself, cowboy.” Elena brushed at the wet champagne stain, “sorry about the mess.” 

“Like I said, it’s not my suit, but I’ll have it dry cleaned before returning it.” 

“Ha, how considerate.” The bite of sarcasm didn’t even phase him. His eyes stayed locked on her.

“What are you doing here, Elena?”

Elena bit hard into her lip, stopping the lump forming in her throat. It had not been easy to leave him.  _ He _ did not make it easy when he became someone that mattered more to her than anything else. Elena wanted to hold onto him for as long as she could, and she did until she was so sick she couldn’t bare it anymore. 

A heart could only take so much before giving out.

“It’s the ‘Uncharted’ wrap party.” She looked around, it’s far more extravagant than it had any right to be, but the richer producers were trying to entice the crew to renew their contracts. 

“Oh. It’s really over then?” He asked and Elena nodded. Nate took her empty champagne glass. “Congrats are in order.” He said, quickly stepping away to replace her glass with two full flutes from a passing waiter. “Cheers.” He said, handing her a full glass.

A smile came to her lips followed by a reserved, “cheers,” and a small clink of their glasses. 

“You probably should clean that up.” She gestured to his shirt and distracted herself with finding the nearest serving bar. Nate was on her tail, with words unspoken his hand slipped into hers so he wouldn’t lose her in the passing crowd. 

Discarding the champagne, she grabbed a cocktail napkin and turned to dab at the wet spot on his shirt.

Nate’s hand covered her wrist to get her to stop. “You don’t need to do that.” 

She stared at his hand, felt his touch; it wasn’t fair. “I do.” She cleared her throat. “I need to watch you.” 

He let go of her and took a step back. His jaw clenched as he glared at her, “I’m not your toddler to babysit!”

“I’m not gonna let you rob the people I worked with.”

Nate leaned against the bar beside her and set his champagne down to motion the bartender for something a little stronger. “You don’t even know what I’m doing here.” He said after a quick swig. 

“You already said,  _ A job _ .” She could care less to know how dangerous it was. When she let him go it was to let go of the sleepless nights wondering if he was dead somewhere. 

“A simple lift. I would be out already if you hadn’t ran into me.”

Elena laughed and nudged him with her hip. “oh, so it’s my fault?” She’d meant to be playful to ease the tension, but all she did was close the distance between each other, creating an entirely new type of tension. 

Nate stared down at her, lip caught between his teeth before he said, “yeah. It’s completely your fault, actually.” His once over was becoming egregious, so much so Elena’s skin began to heat up. Suddenly she second guessed her choice of dress. Plain, black, and really nothing special, but it was professional. 

Elena tucked a stray hair behind her ear and fiddled with her champagne glass because it was the only thing she had. “I’ll leave you to it and stay out of your way.” It was painful to keep her voice from breaking, but she managed a tone of indifference. She took a breath and put on a smile, “just don’t rob any of my friends.” 

“Noted.” Nate murmured, his lips entirely too close to her ear and his tone too smug. “What are the odds, huh. We run into each other while I’m filling in a favor for Sullivan.” 

Elena patted his arm, “sounds like you got a sure fire plan, Nate. Go and make your lift, get your money. I don’t want to know the details.” 

“Would love to, but my low profile is blown.” 

For the first time Nate’s eyes left her and she followed them over her shoulder to Amelia and Derek whispering and staring directly at them.

“Oh,” Elena’s old coworkers were anything but subtle with their gossiping. Nate was bold enough to wave at them and suddenly they found their drinks very interesting. “Those were, uh, my editors.” 

“Right.” Nate paid the tab at the bar and finished off his drink. “Your editors don’t mind their own business do they?”

Elena shook her head, wanting to leave but not without him. The champagne was getting to her head, “you want to get out of here?” 

Nate brightened up like a kid on Christmas.

*******  
  


It took two minutes longer than necessary to get through the door. Nate fumbled the card key more times than he’d like to admit, but nothing was taking his attention off of what was in front of him. 

Her mouth parted over his in an open kiss. It felt  _ right  _ and damnit he missed this so much. So no, he wasn’t going to spare a second being away from this just to slip a damn key card through a hotel door. 

“Nate,” she murmured his name and that was a rush within itself. Her hand squeezed hard at his side and he smiled to himself. She could do that without worrying about any bruises or cuts. He’d been choosing low risk jobs, kept things simple and purely professional. 

“Nate,” she whimpered into the kiss. He broke away, nuzzling under her jaw to suck on her skin there, dragging his teeth over her pulse point while his hand latched onto the door handle behind her, slowly getting into the room one stumbling step back at a time. Nate kicked the door shut, Elena pulled back from their kiss, her hand coming up to stroke the side of his face, “this doesn’t mean...” she trailed off. 

“I know,” he quickly nodded, not missing a beat, “I know what you mean.” It was just sex, not a second chance. 

Nate kissed her again, anyway. Last month when he came home from Zurich he was nursing a broken wrist, empty pockets, and an abandoned apartment. His laundry had been done and the bathroom cleaned, but the closet and cabinets were half empty. She packed up and left, leaving behind Nate with all his false promises. 

She was done, convinced they had ran their course. This was nothing but a cheap booty call. 

But it felt damn good, he hasn’t been able to sleep with anyone else since she left and he had hoped that it had been the same for her. 

They were really over, she made it clear, but he still felt obligated to remain faithful. If he could be good and if she could see that he  _ could _ make it up to her, then maybe it wasn’t too late. Things could go back to the way they were.

He screwed up, but he could fix it. 

Elena started walking backwards into the room, biting her lip and not breaking eye contact. One of the straps to her dress fell down her shoulder and it took everything Nate had not to walk up and pin her down to the nearest surface.

“Goddamnit, Elena.”

She put on a big goofy smile and shifted her weight from foot to foot. Nate was watching the tilt of her hips but apparently she was showing off her shoes. 

“It’s the heels, isn’t it? They’re pretty hot.”

Nate spared a glance at them. They were black with a strap around the ankle. They looked nice but it was the girl wearing them that put the wind in his sails— so to speak.

Nate shrugged, “they’re nothing special.” 

Elena wasn’t convinced with his assessment. “Look,” she walked back to him, grabbing him by the jacket, her eyes glaring into his with a challenge. “I’m taller.” 

“Maybe,” Nate was still looking down at her, she was so little the tallest heels in the world wouldn’t make her match his height. “But you’re still short.” Nate pressed forward and Elena stumbled back at the unexpected step, he caught her of course, “short  _ and  _ clumsy.”

“Oh, you’re one to talk about being clumsy.” Elena’s words began to slur a little.

“You’re drunk.”

“Correction: buzzed.” She said as she all but slapped his ass, her hand digging into his back pocket until she conjured his wallet. 

“Hey!” Nate made a motion to grab it but she spun away, already looking through it. 

“Finders keepers.” She sang out until she discovered the depressing truth. Unsatisfied, she tossed his wallet back. “No condoms?” She said with such disbelief it was almost insulting.

Nate caught his wallet and put it back in his pants. “Yeah, I haven't had much use for them lately.” Something akin to pity flashed in her eyes so Nate puffed out his chest to save face, “I’ve been working... a lot.”

“You tried to get lucky knowing you don’t have any condoms?” 

“I didn’t think that far ahead.” Or that this would actually happen.

Elena covered her face with her hands, even through her fingers he could see how red her cheeks were getting. “This is a disaster. To get over someone you’re supposed to get under someone  _ else!!” _

Nate’s brain short circuited, “Wait, you’re not over me?”

“I certainly am.” She defied.

Nate crossed his arms, “Oh really? If you’re over me then who were you under?” 

“None of your business!”

“Because it was nobody!” 

“Nathan!”

“Elena! You need to stop lying to yourself.”

“Haha, that’s ironic coming from you.” 

Through the fog the alcohol put into his brain, Nate felt wounded by those words.“I  _ know _ we’re not finished. That’s not something I tell myself just to get by. You’ve convinced yourself we can’t be together, that’s on you.” 

He could see Elena’s body tense up, energy coursing through her until she acted on it. She wrestled her heels off and came toe to toe with him, “I know we are done because I can’t give you what you want. You don’t love me more than the lure of adventure, and I will be damned if I’m the one keeping you from that.” 

Nate took her by the back of the head, tilting her chin up into a biting kiss. He wouldn’t be soft and gentle because it was clear all she wanted was a fight, and she gave into the fight. Her hand fisted roughly in his hair and her teeth sunk into his lip. 

He didn’t take much note in their surroundings, but was able to successfully guide her to the bed. Instinct took over when Elena crashed down onto the mattress. He forced her dress up, hand taking its place between her legs as he nuzzled the underside of her jaw. He took satisfaction in every pleased noise from her that she tried so hard to conceal. 

Nate pushed himself up on his arm and crowded her underneath him, rolling her onto her stomach so he could get at her better, but he stopped abruptly, struck with a sudden thought. “Shit—wait—” He pulled his hand out of her panties, and Elena wriggled beneath him, breathing hard as she tried to twist her head around to look at him.

“What? What is it?” she panted, voice rough with desperation. Heart pounding in his ears, Nathan reached over the side of the bed for his duffle bag, unzipping one of the side pockets. With his wet fingers, he scrounged around inside, his burgeoning hope already dying a quick death when—there! He crowed victoriously, yanking out a strip of condoms. He’d almost forgotten about them. they must be a year old by now, as he hadn’t used them since the last time Elena came with him on a—

Well, anyway, he wasn’t going to think about that right now. “I have condoms,” he announced, quite proud, and a little delirious as all the blood in his head had rushed to his dick.

“Oh thank god!” Elena cheered.

Tomorrow things were going to be shitty again, but Nate lived in the moment and if this was going to be their last time he wasn’t going in with half measures. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone interested I have a mostly uncharted themed tumblr: Elena-fishr 
> 
> I’ve been obsessed with photomode recently so I’ve been pretty active uploading pictures, feel free to talk to me there if you’d like!


	14. I earned this (all of it)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What did they earn? (Happiness. They all deserve HAPPINESS)

Elena leaned against the counter taking a small breath before setting the rest of the table. 

She’d taken Sam’s extra help with household chores for granted, he’d been such an unexpected assistant since he'd been staying with her and Nate. 

Of course as a host she’d fought him on his offers of help, but with Nate gone all day at work and Elena in her office, Sam’s hands needed to be busy or else they’d find trouble. 

They fell into a comfortable routine. Sam's nervous energy transformed into something more content. Elena was proud of her little family mending. Sam kept to himself, something his guilt told him to do (especially in front of Elena) but she gave him no choice. Elena included Sam in her routine, especially when Nate was at work.

But now she missed him. She grew tired quickly, especially as the day was ending. Nate kept Sam out of the house so Elena could set up his birthday dinner, she had no idea what Nate planned, but if she had to guess they’d be out on the water having a beer. 

Elena looked over her work. The kitchen table now getting more action than it has ever gotten. Nate and Elena had a nasty habit of eating on the couch, unfortunately Sam did not deter them from changing their ways. 

If her texts from Sully were right then he’d make it in time for presents. 

Elena was counting on that, the party wouldn’t be complete without Sullivan. 

Elena heard the front door and not long after Sam and Nate’s voices rang through the house until they were entering the living room. 

Sam caught a glimpse of Elena beside the full table in the kitchen. His mouth slightly parted in surprise, the silence filled by Nate putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“Happy birthday!” Nate said and gave his brother a little shake to get a word out of him.

Elena brought over a cupcake with a candle she sneakily lit. “Happy birthday!” 

Sam blindly took the dessert she handed him, his eyes still over the display of food. “This all homemade?” 

“Of course.” Elena ran a critical eye over the messily rolled sushi and imperfect dumplings. Since getting out of jail Sam has expressed a fondness for sushi, but she and Nate never ordered it. Nate might’ve even teased him about it, one night he conspired privately to Elena that it could’ve been a Rafe Adler influence. 

Sam’s eyebrows folded together and Elena felt her heart stutter. She should’ve just ordered the sushi from a restaurant rather than trying to figure it out for herself. 

Elena pointed to the cupcake in his hand. “Oh, make a wish. Nate and I never paid attention to the dessert after dinner rule.” 

The corner of Sam's mouth ticked up in a smile, “yeah, I’ve noticed.” He nudged Nate back with his shoulder and looked to Elena. “Wow, thank you guys. I- I don’t know what more I could even wish for.”

“You’ll think of something.” Nate said nodded, “now blow that out so we can get to the food.”

***

Sam gave a glowing review of Elena’s sushi recipe and went on endlessly about how appreciative he was. Nate began to scoff at him, but thanked Elena all the same. 

She was just glad it was edible. 

She felt Nate’s hand over her’s under the table and she laced their fingers together. “So what did you guys do today?” 

“Evening boat ride.” Sam said while his cheeks were full. 

“Water was choppy.” Nate added. 

“Yeah my ass is gonna be sore for a week.” 

Elena put a hand to her mouth to keep from laughing. Despite their complaints she’s sure they had a good time bouncing around in the boat feeling the wind as they went too fast. 

When the brothers were together Elena could see that childhood never left their spirits. 

She often thought of that Polaroid of when they were kids. Back then they were just as competitive, wild, and caring as they were now. 

Elena squeezed Nate’s hand as the other went to her stomach. 

“Party started without me?” 

Elena didn’t even hear the front door, but there Sully was taking his jacket off. Elena went to take it off his hands and put it on the rack. 

Sully kissed her on the cheek, “told you I’d make it, darling.” 

“I didn’t doubt you.” She greeted.

Sully went to send his best wishes to Sam, his hand on Sam’s shoulder like Nate he done earlier. Elena found herself hanging back just to watch. Her house was filled with warmth and love. If Elena didn’t keep herself in check a few tears would roll down her cheeks. 

What made it all the more rewarding was that they  _ worked _ to get here. This happiness wasn’t luck, they earned this, so Elena wasn’t afraid of it slipping away like it had before. 

After Sully had his share (of Nate’s tacos because he wasn’t a fan of sushi either) everyone migrated to the living room. Nate getting up to hand Sam his present.

Sam threw his hands up in surrender, “c’mon guys, I’m too old for this.” 

“Never.” Nate said deadly serious. 

“You only say that to ensure you still get gifts for your birthday.” Sully said, pointing an unlit cigar at him.

Nate shrugged, “it feels nice no matter what age you are.” 

Sam was rolling his eyes opening the box but once he saw what was inside his whole demeanor changed. His back straightened and his features grew serious. Hand coming up to swipe his fingers over the details, “Nate, did you do this?” 

Elena nodded for him since he wasn’t giving an answer. 

Sam pulled his gift fully out of its case, it was a ukulele Elena found at an antique shop. It was in great shape with some added charm from its age. She cleaned it up and Nate painted a beautiful tropical landscape on it. 

“Can’t wait you hear you play,” Sully chided, still fidgeting with his unlit cigar. 

“I faintly remember mom had you in those classes.”

Sam laughed but his eyes stayed on the detailed brush strokes, “yeah, those were guitar lessons, Nathan.”

“So practice on the ukulele and then next year you can graduate to a guitar.” 

“Nah,” Sam cradled the ukulele in his arms, poised to strum a song, “I like the size of this.”

Elena leaned over toward Sam, eager to hear something, “you know, playing out on the boat would be nice.” 

“Good idea.” Sam said, fingers playing one soft note at a time as if he was getting used to the feel of the instrument. It seemed to be coming back to him naturally. “At least until that old radio gets fixed. 

Nate’s hand slid onto her thigh, reaching until he found her hand and squeezed. Elena sat back next to him on the couch. His eyes gave her a knowing look and she nodded and cleared her throat. 

“Not to steal the spotlight, but Nate and I have some news to share and since we are all here together there couldn’t be a more perfect time.” Elena felt hot with the eyes in the room on her. Sullivan already had a grin on his face but Sam’s face twisted in curiosity. 

Nate threw an arm around her shoulders and then his hand instinctively went to her stomach the same time her own hand did. “Elena and I are expecting a baby.” 

“Congratulations, you two.” The warmth of those words from sully wrapped around Elena like a hug. She could feel how proud he was and Nate felt it all the same as he held onto Elena just a little tighter. 

Sully had been prepared, the wise old con man had seen this coming. Sam on the other hand, he was completely lost. 

Nate looked to his older brother, desperate for a sign of how he felt but Sam was a shocked blank canvas. 

“I-I- wow. Nate-“ he blabbed, words escaping him as he gestured wildly with his hands to catch them. “Holy crap.” He settled for and collapsed back into the couch. “That’s a hell of a miracle.” 

Nate put on a smile but Elena could tell he didn’t know how to take Sam’s reaction. His knee started bouncing just as he let out a nervous chuckle. “What is? That I’m gonna be a dad or you’re gonna be an uncle?” 

“God, Nathan.” Sam wiped both hands down his face before he jumped up and began pacing the room. “This is the happiest news I’ve heard in my life!” His hand went to his chest, “I need a goddamn cigarette.” 

Elena bumped her knee against Nate’s to get it to stop. “You look pretty stressed.” 

Sam stopped to stare at Elena, “I am! You’re cooking a little baby in there, my brother will have a little baby of his own to take care of!” 

Nate gave a good natured laugh and got up, his arms spread wide and Sam walked right to him. 

“God, I’m proud of you Nathan.” They embraced and over Nate’s shoulder Sam was looking at her, “come here, sister.” 

Soon enough they were all tangled in a hug, even Sully threw himself in the mix. They were all laughs and smiles and Elena could see the shine in Nate’s eyes, he was one more proud hug away from a quivering lip and a few joyful tears sliding down his cheeks. 


	15. All for a breathtaking view (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A two parter focusing on how/ why Elena grows cautious of adventuring (pre uncharted 2) 
> 
> It’s not the adventures themselves, but Nate going off on them without her watching his back

After the initial shock had passed and Elena could move her feet (one step at a time she reminded herself) she hastily shook out of her bulky winter coat and threw her keys onto the counter as she ran past.

Sullivan had done her the courtesy of a call to tell her Nate’s trip went sideways. 

Had she known he was out of the country she would not have been so blindsided. 

Betrayal stung at her aching chest, but it’d have to wait. Nate had only gotten as far as his couch. 

Crashed with his face smashed into the armrest. Elena grabbed the first thing she could reach on to, his leg, and shook him as she made her way up to his shoulders and knelt there beside him.

To her horror he laid there limp and nerveless as she squeezed his hand as if that would put life into it.

“Nate,” she choked, her other hand cupping his cheek. His skin was cool, as was his apartment. He either didn’t bother to turn the heat on or didn’t pay the bill. 

“Nate. Come on!” 

_One step at a time_. She peeled his face from the couch, effectively rolling his much larger frame over so he could lay without any awkward angles cramping his muscles. 

He was worse for wear, cuts, swelling, and bruising along his brow and lip and eyes. Elena worked at removing his over worn shoes. She loathed to see the state of the rest of him that was covered. There may be injuries that needed her attention, but she didn’t want to move him more than necessary. 

There was an old throw blanket covering the neighboring recliner and Elena tucked it over Nate to retain heat. 

Her heart raced as the water in the kitchen ran ice cold, it seemed like forever until it spit out warm water she could fill a bowl with. 

Grabbing a washcloth, she sat beside Nate’s limp form and dabbed at the open gashes on his forehead. 

She prayed for his mind, his memories. He’d suffered short-term memory loss from a fall before. He may not be so lucky this time. 

Stray water dripped onto his face as she worked. Elena touched her cheeks, they were wet. She hadn’t realized she was crying and once she did her shoulders shook with a frigid sob. 

Had she known he was out of the country she would’ve been there for him! 

In a heartbeat, plane booked and bags packed with no questions asked! 

In the back of her mind a voice is calling her stupid. He’d been too quiet for too long. Instinct should’ve been gnawing at her that something was wrong.

Trust was built. After Panama, Nate had her life in his hands and she had his, neither of them treated that lightly. She thought he was done swindling her, going behind her back with already made plans to leave her behind.

Elena tried to steady her hands as she slowly wiped away dried blood from his skin. 

Nate refused hospital care at every turn, but against his wishes and for his own sake she wanted to call an ambulance. She wanted someone who knew what they were doing to take care of him because she clearly can’t.

She didn’t even know where to start.

While she cleaned him up, an act that did not feel near enough but it was all she could do, her mind went over all the ways ‘sideways’ meant.

Sully didn’t go to much detail, but his voice was grave, he was  _ quiet _ . 

Surely Sully wouldn’t have just left him if he was on his deathbed? 

Fear buckled in her hands as the sudden urge to check Nate overran the fear of seeing more injuries. 

She inched the throw cover down and his too thin shirt up, the skin there already wrapped with loosening bandages. Red dotted the surface, signaling he needed a clean change.

Elena could see it without undoing the amature patch up, the bullet wound just below his rib cage. Her biggest worry come to life, laying in front of her, the only sounds accompanying are her short sniffles and the whisper of a breath that came from Nate’s unmoving form. 

Elena stifled her sobs and chewed the inside of her cheek as she carefully covered him back up. 

She’d have to wait for him to wake before she could give him clean bandages. 

“...  _ Idiot… _ ” she cried softly. Her fingers were gentle as they raked through his mussed hair, surprisingly downy soft. 

Her eyes grew heavy with exhaustion and a type of grief she did not know, but as lethargic as they felt they snapped to the new movement in the still room.

Nate’s nose crinkled that led into a grimace and a groan. 

Elena swallowed thick and placed her hands feather light on either side of his face. A breath caught in her throat when he leaned into her touch.

“-Lena…” escaped his lips, only reaching her ears because she was so close.

“I’m here.” She eagerly reassured. “I’m here, I’m not going anywhere.” 

“Stay.” He whispered his eyes kept closed but his hand twitched for something so she took it in one of hers while brushing back his hair.

“I’m not leaving.” She said, her voice laced with new determination. “I’m here with you, always.” 

His fingers squeezed hers to signal he heard before they slipped back to deadweight. 


End file.
